As part of the Gaming Partnerships and Business Development organization (GPBD) the First Party Business Development (1PBD) team is a group of diverse, dedicated business development experts who contribute significantly to the success of 1st Party Content and Studios (1PCS) by supporting existing and future software development for the 1PCS games portfolio.

We are seeking a Business Development Manager to represent Microsoft’s business needs through relationships and deal negotiation with the global videogame development community and content partners. In this role, the Business Development Manager will: Identify game development studios, game concepts, licenses and characters that support Microsoft’s global interactive entertainment content strategy and production needs across Microsoft’s hardware, software and services; Provide consistent world-class business development service to the 1PCS teams to support existing franchises such as Starfield, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Doom, as well as original games that have not yet been announced.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

Responsibilities

Customer and Partner Focus:

• Develop and maintain internal and external relationships with business and technical partners within the industry.

• Develop an understanding of the business and strategy of 1PCS partners and apply this understanding in the execution of deals/plans

Partnership Strategy:

• Support senior colleagues in identifying, evaluating and articulating partnership opportunities for internal 1PCS partners. Examples include support to help:

• Find and evaluate new concepts, content providers, IP holders and other potential partnerships in the connected entertainment sector (games and entertainment).

• Organize pitch meetings where external partners respond to requests for proposals from 1PCS or present original proposals to request funding and publishing support to develop and release new games.

• Develop potential partner lists to help 1PCS stakeholders meet high-priority game development needs across all functions (engineering, art, production, etc.).

• Support the due diligence process in collaboration with senior management, during which the 1PBD team will evaluate the production, design and market viability of a proposed product and the external partner’s ability to deliver on their proposal.

• Understand the gaming and entertainment industry, including technology and competitive trends, through research (reading industry research reports, attending internal/external conferences, gathering subject matter expert/mentor feedback, leveraging internal and third-party resources, talking directly with partners, etc.), apply that knowledge to understand how Microsoft is positioned within the industry, and leverage that knowledge to impact results. Consolidate information into reports to present/share insights with the team, and to inform senior management’s communication to the broader GPBD and 1PCS organizations.

• Additional internal partnership examples include cross-group collaboration with finance and marketing teams to help gather data and materials for project planning (such as P&L and forecast development), and the contract management and legal teams to draft, negotiate, approve and sign agreements.

• Gather data and information and prepare reports for distribution to key stakeholders.

Negotiation:

• Support/Lead deal opportunities through the various deal stages (e.g., Strategic Approval, Approval to Negotiate, Final Go-no-go) contributing to materials and analyses for executive reviews, deal approval meetings, etc.

• Support/Lead the deal process by tracking deal issues, supporting operational tasks, and escalating as appropriate. Close opportunities using predefined program frameworks or templates, as applicable, and successfully negotiate deals supported by senior management, legal, and finance.

Deal Management/Governance:

• Assist with/Lead deal management and execution by identifying blocking issues and driving resolution, reviewing key contract terms with stakeholders, and communicating with and reporting to GPBD and 1PCS partners.

• Manage post-deal governance and execution plans by working with stakeholders and assessing progress against defined success metrics. Capture and report on issues.

Partner Management:

• Be business development support/primary point of contact for studios inside the 1PCS organization. Regularly meeting, managing, and tracking BD needs for the supported studios.

• Be business development support/primary point of contact for individual studios/ partners outside the 1PCS organization. Attendtradeshows to meet new and existing partners for 1PCS to consider. Provide a point of contact for external game development studios to access the resources supplied to the game development community by the broader Xbox organization.

Embody our Culture (https://careers.microsoft.com/v2/global/en/culture) & Values (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/about/corporate-values)

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Liberal Arts, Sciences, or related field AND 3+ years relevant work experience (e.g., investment banking, consulting, finance, marketing, corporate strategy, sales, venture capital, legal, business development, product management, project management, software development, or related field)

• OR equivalent experience.

• 3+ years of experience in a business development role or a role that closely interacted with partner teams to help grow their business and knowledge of all forms of interactive entertainment, including video game content on console, PC or mobile.

• Experience collaborating across teams and building relationships, as well as demonstrated ability to clearly communicate relatively complex or unfamiliar concepts to coworkers of various seniority levels.

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated ability to navigate in an environment with ambiguous direction, and involve management when guidance is needed.

• 3+ years of experience working directly with video game developers.

• 3+ years of experience in contract negotiation and the ability to understand the financial and production components of interactive software development deals.

• Ability to articulate the success and failures of games and to use that knowledge to help inform internal stakeholders about what kind of gaming content may help create the greatest impact for Microsoft’s customers.

• Ability to develop and provide data driven support.

Business Development IC3 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $83,400 - $167,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $108,900 - $183,000 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here: https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

Microsoft will accept applications for the role until October 31, 2024.

#GamingJobs

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. Consistent with applicable law, all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations (https://careers.microsoft.com/v2/global/en/accessibility.html) .